From In Magazine

Dark Play or Stories for Boys
by Les Spindle

It’s seldom that one sees a work that leaves such an indelible impression that it’s impossible to shake it from one’s mind days afterwards. Jane Anderson’s enthralling, intelligent and heart-wrenching world-premiere work is one that can make the Geffen Playhouse proud. The company commissioned the piece from the prodigious Anderson, noted for previous plays such as Looking for Normal and Defying Gravity.

The premise is simple, yet profound—two married couples with vastly different life experiences and viewpoints deal with grief and faith in their own ways. In the process, they learn an enormous amount from one another and find solace in their shared humanity. Issues of religion, morality and life’s other inevitable challenges come into play when Bill (Scott Bakula) and Dinah (JoBeth Williams) pay a visit to Dinah’s cousin Jeannette (Laurie Metcalf) and her husband Neil (Dennis Boutsikaris). Bill and Dinah are trying to move past the tragic loss of their daughter’s brutal murder, while Jeannette and Neil are picking up the pieces following the destruction of their home in a fire. The homeless couple have even bigger news—Neil is dying of cancer, and Jeannette plans to assist him with a mercy killing. And Jeanette has yet another bombshell that sends the two couples’ inter-relationships into a tailspin, as their vastly different belief systems collide head-on.

Under Anderson’s impeccable direction, the performances are riveting. The always-fascinating Metcalf achieves a multilayered portrayal as she juxtaposes indomitable strength with human weakness, and wry humor with utter despair. Bakula is a powerhouse, parlaying a potentially unsympathetic character into a definitive embodiment of the play’s non-judgmental look at the way we individually deal with faith and mortality. Boutsikaris plays Neil with great dignity and intelligence, and Williams’ poignant portrayal is likewise electrifying. Anderson’s play is a beautiful and unforgettable glimpse of humanity at its most vulnerable yet resilient, and this is among the year’s finest productions.

© 2007 IN Los Angeles Magazine.